Insurance status and provision of dental services in Australian private general practice

Annual expenditure on dental care in Australia amounts to AUD 1.9 billion. Approximately one-third of this expenditure involves private dental insurance, yet little is known about the impact of insurance on the provision of services. The aim of this analysis was to examine differences in dental service provision between insured and non-insured patients. Data collected from a random sample of dentists from a survey conducted in 1993-94 were used, providing 817 responses (response rate 74%). Logistic regression analysis controlling for patient age and sex and reason for visit indicated that in private general practice insured patients were more likely to receive preventive (OR = 1.37), crown and bridge (OR = 2.25), and endodontic services (OR = 1.27), but less likely to receive extraction services (OR = 0.52). However, no significant differences by insurance status were found for diagnostic, restorative, or prosthodontic services in the multivariate models. These differences in service provision by insurance status indicate a more favorable pattern of services for insured patients, and point to equity issues in the provision of services.